Picking resort!?!?

[wdw4lif]

We are going to be making our reservations in about a month... For early November 2017. Trying to decide where we want to stay. We're hoping for FD this spring to be offered, but according to history, not expecting it. So for right now, we're going to book room only so we're booked in and hopefully at least get a room discount. We stayed at POP last year and didn't like it. We don't like AS Sports. We've stayed at AS Music numerous times. Never stayed at AS Movies or AoA. We are looking for a value (I know AoA is slightly higher than the other values).

• Choice 1: Art of Animation - Lines seem shorter at end of night in parks. Plus the hotel looks interesting & is the newest. We've never stayed here.
• Choice 2: All Star Music - We like the layout of this resort, and we consider it "our" resort where we've been so many times. We know our way around well. Not crazy about sharing busses though. Have not stayed there since 2005 though.
• Choice 3: All Star Movies - We've never stayed here before and it's the newest All Star resort. Still the bus sharing issue....

So .... Pros/Cons & suggestions needed! TIA

 

[TLM2015]

I've stayed at All Star Movies for one night so we didn't really use the resort much other than to briefly go to the pool and sleep. The downside of ASMo is we had a connecting room and we could hear whole conversations through it. This is true of many hotel connecting rooms though.

I stayed at AoA for 5 nights last year and it is a very nice resort. My DD loved it and the main pool area has zero entry and a splash playground near it. There is also a pool near the cars area and the little mermaid area. That being said the downside is that while AoA is considered a value and I would say that the Little Mermaid room (this is where we stayed) is about the same as the ASMo room as far as size, amenities etc, it is priced higher than the All Star rooms for what I would say is kind of the same room although much newer. Another warning is that the mermaid rooms are kind of far from the main building with the food court and the main pool. It wasn't too bad for us but we rented a car so we weren't walking back and forth every day or night. We used the main pool a few times but did use the pool in the little mermaid area more and I never refilled my resort mug because the walk wasn't worth it. That being said we loved the resort and I would go again, even with the higher price, because my daughter likes the theme.

I'm considering AS Sports, what about them is worse than the other AS resorts?

 

[maxiesmom]

How about the Sports? I have a couple of really nice stays at that resort. On the rare occasion the resorts share a bus, the Sports is the first picked up and the first dropped off. But sharing is very rare in my experiences.

I think people here "Sports" and go "Eww, stinking locker rooms" or something. It is actually very pretty, especially the Surfs Up section which is done in blues and greens. I wouldn't pay more for a standard room at AoA, and be placed at the very back of that resort, which is where all the standard rooms are.

 

[toonaspie]

There's not really much as far as the value resorts go that can definitely put one above the other. I'm surprised you didn't like POP cause everyone keeps saying that their bus wait is the best out of all the values. I don't think there's any escaping the bus share issue no matter which All Star Resort you pick. However I see it as no different from staying at a moderate resort where your bus has to make numerous stops around the resort before heading to your destination.

As TLM pointed out, the standard rooms in AoA are in the back of the resort so you will have a longer walk to the main building and busses.

Since all the standard Value rooms are about the same in size and offerings you might as well go by which theme is the most appealing. The Little Mermaid rooms in AoA are the priciest due to their high demand as well as being far more themed and elaborate compared to the standard generic theming of the rooms you would get in the All-Stars. I've heard great things about AoA's foodcourt as well.